The Shard
by RavineS
Summary: She is a childhood friend of Balthier. Someone from the past with all sort of familiarity toward Ffamran. Then again, she was the childhood friend, left behind in the city while he ran from his homeplace. However, the Gods seems to rather fond in presenting him a chance of meeting her again. Balthier x OC


Disclaimer : I don't own Final Fantasy XII, except for my OC and a little story about her.

Warning : M, slow-build.

* * *

 **1**

 **Dreadnought Leviathan: First Encounter**

* * *

The Royal Palace of Rabanastre – Consul Chamber

"Those decrepit, basking fools in Archades tie my hands, and look what happens! I tell you, this country's obstinacy knows no bound."

The broad and hoarse voice belonged to none other than Vayne Solidor— the third son of the Emperor Gramis himself—cut through the silence surrounding the quiet chamber, fury and resentment displayed in its tone. The man was seething, dropping off all the charismatic façade he wore in front of those Dalmascan people as his azure eyes made contact with the hazel ones of Judge Gabranth.

Gabranth lowered his head, dared not to utter a single opinion of him in front of the Consul, merely choosing to kept his hazel iris down toward the red carpet below him. It was common among the other Judges to kept their mouth shut in front of the man's presence, fearing that one wrong word may lead them stripped off of their title. There had been enough of such things proving itself in front of them, with Vayne firing anyone he felt had crossed him.

Vayne heaved a sigh as his hawk eyes gazed toward the slumbering city laid out before him. The sly man was probably thinking for a way to deal with this trouble—if he had not already thought of it. Serving the House Solidor for years had made Gabranth aware of Vayne's nature—a sly, ambitious man with intelligence and power to back it up. It was because of his plan that the Empire managed to drive the Kingdom of Dalmasca up to this point, something Gabranth would toast his drink for. Even Emperor Gramis—the current Emperor—had mentioned that he had not any concern for his third son, for he was the kind of man who would survive out there by himself using his brain and sly tactics.

However, Vayne was the kind of man almost everyone deemed unsuitable to raise as the Emperor. No matter how big his part in the last war, Gabranth had enough eyes to see that the citizen of Archadia still wary of him. Vayne may make a good strategist, but not a ruler. His cold-blooded heart and apathetic nature had proven him nothing but unfit for the seat. This is also why those 'fools'—generally known as Counselors of the Empire—Vayne mentioned previously was trying hard to prevent the man from taking up the position.

Gabranth too was no exception. Although Archadia had never been his birthplace, he had been attached enough to start considering its future. He had walked the street of both the new and the old—taking notes of the big differences between those residences and found himself trying to change it. It was also strange to think that Larsa, the youngest son of the Emperor had managed to won both respect and favor from him. His open-minded way and careful thinking had already hinted at his capability as a ruler. Young age he might be, but that mind of his was certainly had matured enough for these cruel politics. Of course, he didn't tell anyone about it. If there was one thing Gabranth was much skilled than his brother, it would be to conceal any emotion and favor he had for anyone.

"The insurgents in Rabanastre operate alone at present. However, should they garner external support, the situation could worsen." Gabranth found himself immediately speaking when he saw a wave of the hand from Vayne, signaling him to tell what he had come to inform. He had heard from the soldiers outside that Doctor Cid was on his way here from the Draklor Laboratory, and he knew that if Vayne stalled this meeting between them any longer the eccentric doctor might invite himself in.

"We have found the Counter-Imperial elements in Bhujerba to be conspicuously well-funded. No doubt Marquis Ondore is behind this. Ondore must be reined in."

Vayne tensed—a slight, smooth movement to show his annoyance as he hummed out a non-syllable response to Gabranth. It was no secret that despite Bhujerba retain its right as a free, neutral city the old Marquis Ondore was not. Ondore had been secretly trying to gamble his way and evading death unlike his friend—King Raminas—had done so. Yet at the mention of Ondore, Vayne turned toward him, his hand holding a red envelope with a prideful smile plastered on his face.

"By the way, the Marquis has written us a letter. He claims that he's recaptured our runaway. He's given him to Ghis."

"He will die by my hand," Gabranth growled, earning him a satisfied look from Vayne. The man had already seated himself back behind the long desk, carefully tucking the envelope into his pocket.

"Your fraternity is moving. Ah, Ghis returns with Larsa. Tomorrow morning they will leave Bhujerba. See him home safely, Gabranth. Now, I'm expecting Doctor Cid. You may leave."

Gabranth nodded, bowed in respect for the man in front of him before turning to trudge his way out of the room. He was in time—apparently—since the door opened to reveal a silver-haired man around his fifty years walking inside. As usual, his dilated, maniacal eyes were looking to somewhere off, talking to himself in a rather loud voice. Fortunately, Gabranth had already gotten his fill of this strange scene almost every now and then. He had already used to it by now. He ignored the curiosity that piqued when the Doctor mentioned his homeland, choosing to walk quickly to the door.

Afterall, he had a better job to do. And he would prefer to be by Larsa's side than his cruel brother any longer.

...

* * *

Dreadnought Leviathan – Cell C-202

"Get inside, 'fake princess'!"

The door leading to the cell C-202 swung open, and Ashelia B'nargin Dalmasca found herself being thrust into the small white room before the door was locked again from the outside.

"Well, this will be your new palace now." One of the two guards snorted, laughing as they peered behind the cell's door toward her. "Anything you want to order, princess? We will bring it up to you instantly."

"No, no. You don't act that way toward a princess. Look at my example." The other scolded, frowning as he turned to look at Ashe. "Oh, Your Majesty. What do you like to order? This servant of yours will bring it to you instantly."

The guards cackled to their own jokes, unaware of the glare that the sandy blonde-haired woman sent toward them.

"I am no 'fake princess'!" She shouted at them, wishing that at this point in time she had learned any Black Magick to cast at those guards. Her weapon and armor had been confiscated from the first time she was brought here, and the same goes with her stocks of potion and mote. "Say what you may about me, but I am the one and only Princess of Dalmasca. Ashelia B'nargin Dalmasca, that is! And both of you have absolutely no right to speak like that in front of me!"

"Whoa, this one sure is delusional." The former guard said to his companion, taking a step back from her cell door. "Judge Ghis is right. This fake princess is crazy. Maybe we should leave her alone for now."

The other nodded, his eyes glanced at her a little fearfully from behind his head guard. "I agree with you. Let's go."

Ashe scoffed, listening to the sound of their footsteps walking out of the room before seated herself on the simple bed, resting her back on the cold white wall behind her. The previous meeting with the traitor of her kingdom—former Captain Basch von Rosenburg—had angered her greatly that the insult from both of the guards had a little affect on her. The word surprise wouldn't define what she felt when she met the blonde man—alive and breathing—despite the news of his death throughout the kingdom two years ago.

Yet the only thing she managed to do was slap him, Ashe grimaced at the recollection. There had been a lot of things he deserved after two years, and what he got from her the first time they met was only a slap.

"I should have hit his head," Ashe muttered, looking down at the hand she used to slap him. "Or maybe I should have borrowed Ghis sword to cut his head myself."

"That was quite a thought, for a Princess like you."

Ashe jumped, surprised to hear another voice echoed through the empty room. She hadn't actually realized that there might be someone else other than her, but she remembered that there had been another cell beside her own in the room.

"Who are you?" She called out, standing up and moved to look out from the small space of bar at her door. She vaguely saw two other cells in front of her, labeled as C-201 and C-203. "Are you a prisoner too?"

She heard a rustle beside her, and a little, frustrated sigh before the voice replied. "Yes, you can say that. I'm in C-204."

Ashe nodded, feeling a little grateful that there had been someone other than her in this room. From the way she talked, Ashe could guess that the girl was around her age or probably younger. It was nice to know she had a company to talk to, although Ashe was curious how she could end up here.

"Why are you brought here?" Ashe found herself asking, but soon realize it was rude that she didn't ask for the name first. "And…what's your name?"

"Ryliane, but you can call me Rynn if you would like, Your Majesty." The voice answered. "As for why I was brought here, I'm afraid I have no knowledge about that. I was simply whisked away by Judge Ghis from my home."

"Call me Ashe, then. There is no need for formality here." Ashe said, raising her head to look at the white ceiling above her. Her mind began to wander in hope for a certain ebony-haired man to save her. "Are you a Dalmascan? Rozarrian?"

"I might have disappointed you in that part, Princess. I am a born Archadian." Ashe raised her eyebrows. She already had an inkling about that—due to her polite way of talking and graceful tone—but to actually know that the Empire had captured their own kind was a surprise to her. She hadn't expected for the Empire's cruelty to go this far, yet a meeting with Ghis had informed her how much the glorious Empire had fallen in the mercy department. Ashe let out a sigh.

"Don't worry. I won't just immediately ignore you because of that minor fact. I am taught as much by my father."

"Of course, I'm aware of that. I read about it in the book. Rabanastre was a place full of different races, right? Bangaa, Seeq, Moogle…" The voice talked excitedly. "I wish I can see that. I would like to see the city sometimes, if I may. Archades was always full of arrogant woman, and I tire of it."

"I also was curious about the desert surrounding the city. Westersand and Estersand, if I'm not wrong. I read about them in the library, about how sometimes a storm will happen in the Westersand. Let's not forget about the Nebra in Estersand!"

It was actually pretty strange for her to hear an Archadian talk about her country like this, but Ashe felt proud to know that there are a people from the opposing country that can appreciate the city in a good way. She had known a few Archadian tourist back then in Rabanastre which obviously held no respect for her hometown. There also had been a time where Vossler reported to have seen a Bangaa arguing with the tourist. However, there she was, an Archadian residing in the cell beside her who seems to hold so much curiosity about the city. And somehow, that brought a little hope to her that perhaps, there is a small chance for both Archadia and Dalmasca to live peacefully together.

Ashe closed her shimmery blue iris for a little, listening as the girl begin to recite about what she read in the book about Garamsythe Waterway. There might still be a long time until someone came to save her, and at least she could pass the time with this curious girl, right?

"So, in this book, I heard that there had been a sighting of a certain flame spirit in horse shape around this vast waterway. And—"

"Yes, it is. It's called a Firemane. Would you like to hear my story?"

"I would be delighted, Princess!"

"Call me Ashe, I told you so."

...

* * *

The Royal Palace of Rabanastre – Consul Chamber

"Hah, Vayne! You seem to be enjoying your job as consul."

Vayne smiled, looking at the man clad in his usual deep red-purple cloak standing in front of him. Doctor Cid had asked to meet him this morning, a demand which is somewhat surprising to Vayne. It's not every day the man wanted to meet him, for it was always the other way around. Usually, he would be visiting the doctor in his laboratory with a little discussion over the nethicite and shard.

"I was kept waiting fully 2 years. What news of Archades? Our honored members of the Senate?"

"Hard at work as always, trying to find a dagger for your back."

Vayne smirked, seeing that the usual things had apparently never changed. The members of the Senate had never given him their favor, and along with it had made it their task to ensure that he would never raise to replace his father. Vayne had never liked them either but decided to let the Senate do what they want before he began to take care of the hindrance.

"They are welcome to try."

Doctor Cid nodded, but Vayne didn't miss the annoyance on his face. Clearly, the doctor didn't come all the way from Archades just to tell him that. He already had his suspicion when Doctor Cid asked to meet him this morning, but seeing the look on the doctor's face confirmed his suspicion.

"Vayne, it seems that one of your Judges had been trespassing into my laboratory."

Doctor Cid spat out, his eyes glared toward no one in particular. The bags under his eyes showed how frustrated and upset he was. Yet when his silver-gray eyes locked with his own blue, suddenly Vayne was aware that this would bode a bad news for him.

"They had taken the Shard, Vayne. Not the nethicite, but the Shard."

"I don't care who takes it. Gabranth, Ghis, Bergan, Drake…. Name them all, I don't care. I just want the Shard back to me." He continued, his foot tapping impatiently against the hard cold marble floor. He watched as Vayne fell into a deep silence, probably racking his brain trying to guess who might have the guts to steal from the laboratory.

"I don't know the reason, but to try to anger me is one thing indeed. This will prove a bother to me in my study on the nethicite."

"It is a bother, indeed." Vayne agreed, his eyes lingered for a moment at the door where Gabranth had left a few moments ago. "Do you have any suggestion?"

Doctor Cid shrugged.

"Who knows? I left the laboratory for a few hours and went I came back it was a mess. Lots of my worker confirmed it, though. The intruder was a Judge. That familiar armor wasn't something they would mistake." He shifted his gaze toward the empty spot right next to him. "What do you think? Should we just hang them all for efficiency?"

"I'm afraid I can't do that, Doctor. They are all needed for my plan." Vayne cut in. "But I can assure you, I will find the Shard as fast as I can. I trust you can still continue your study, then?"

"I have everything on the control." Doctor Cid replied, turning to leave the room and probably go back to his laboratory in Archades. But before walking toward the door, he glanced over his shoulder toward Vayne, his eyes sharp.

"But I still need that Shard. It's an essential thing for my research."

Vayne nodded.

"Leave it to me."

...

* * *

Dreadnought Leviathan – Central Brig Access

"Vaan! Behind you!"

Vaan raised his Leather Shield up, just in time to block the incoming attack by one of the Judges standing behind him. He threw a grateful look toward the former Captain, thanking him for the reminder as he tried to hold the shield steady against the force of the Judge's sword.

"Fire!" Fran's voice rang behind him, followed by a Fire magick that makes the Judge quickly jump backward, effectively evading the fire coming toward him. However, he didn't manage to evade Vaan's infamous technique—Steal—and had ended up with one less Hi-Potion as Vaan cheerfully tucked it into his pocket.

"Now this is what I call a catch!" Vaan said proudly, turning to look at Fran who had walked to stand beside him, her hand still holding the Oaken Pole she found in the treasure chest on the way here.

"Be careful. He is tough." The Viera warned, her red eyes locked upon the Judge in front of them. He had realized he was missing a Hi-Potion when he cursed and looked at the two, obviously not having enough supplies to heal himself up.

"Ugh, why does this have to happen again?" Vaan screamed in frustration, looking at the others who had been gotten their hands full with enemies too. Basch and Vossler were busy taking care of another Judge along with several Imperial Swordsman a few feet from them, along with Balthier who had been trying to press the Imperial Magus attack.

They had been running through the Leviathan in search of Amalia—who turned out to be the rumoredly deceased Princess Ashe. Vossler, a friend of Basch and formerly a Captain of the Kingdom too had come to also free her and stumbled upon the party, immediately joining up as a guest and informing them to go to the Central Brig. 1. Of course, they were going to enter the area if only these Judges doesn't appear out of nowhere and engage them in this fight.

"If we don't defeat him fast, he may call for help," Fran said, her red eyes gazed toward the entrance to Airship Berth Access—the area where they came from. "No one notice yet, but if we don't hurry someone might activate the alarm again."

"How about this? I will try to attack him from the side, Fran." Vaan said, trying to see if the red-eyed Viera would cooperate with him. "And then you can use your Fire on him from the center."

Fran became silent, seemingly pondering about his offer. Vaan looked at her hopefully. He can't think of any other plan besides this one, and it seems this was the only strategy they can use at this time. The Oaken Pole Fran was using now can't cause any serious injury to them with that heavy armor they are wearing. But the Black Magick she used can. Of course, his Iron Sword can do quite a damage too, but he wasn't sure he can attack the most vital part with his current strength since they had quite a fight on the journey here.

"….Fine, then." Fran replied, a little skeptical but ready to follow. Vaan grinned, clutching his Iron Sword tightly as he waited for Fran to measure her distance against the Judge. After getting the right position, she sent a look towards Vaan, signaling that she is ready to cast her magick. Vaan nodded, before turning to the Judge who was currently trying to heal himself with a vial of potion—which he couldn't let that to happen.

"I'm your opponent!" Vaan shouted, throwing his shield at the Judge to distract him. It was a rather reckless move, but it had successfully gained the Judge's attention. The Judge moves slightly toward him— forget about his potion—while Vaan himself was preparing to use Steal again. The Judge swung his sword, which Vaan dodged by jumping to the left, his hand outstretched toward the potion in the Judge's right pocket.

"Got it!" Vaan shouted, pleased to see another Potion in his hand as he swiftly took his shield back. The Judge turned to move at him, realizing that Vaan had stolen again from him. However, he didn't get the chance to take the Potion back, for Fran's Fire had already slammed him into the wall—hard. The Judge fell, unconscious due to the collision of his head with the Leviathan wall.

"Good job, Fran!" Vaan exclaimed, his hand raised the potion he stole to show it to Fran. Fran nodded, a small smile making its way to her passive face. However, the small celebration ended due to the sound of gunfire coming from Balthier's Vega. Both of them turned their head, only to find that Balthier had shot the last of the Imperial Magus in the shoulder, sending him sprawling on the floor, along with the other Magus he had defeated before.

"Wow, Balthier! You're so cool!" Vaan shouted, admiring the sky pirate as usual. Balthier sent him one of his charming smiles as a return before his attention was turned to the two Dalmascan Knight. They were still busy dealing with three Imperial Swordsman and one Judge to fight.

"Let's help them out," Balthier said, earning him a nod from the two. He immediately directed his Vega to one of the Imperial Swordsman who had crept up behind the unaware Basch, defeating it in the process. "You go help them, Vaan. I and Fran will try to hold the others back."

Vaan nodded, running toward Basch and Vossler that were currently ganging up on the Judge. He stabbed his sword through the Imperial Swordsman, reducing the number to one. However, it didn't last long until Balthier's Vega and Fran's Fire made a quick work of the remaining Imperial Swordsman.

"Are you alright, Basch?!" Vaan asked, throwing a potion he had just stolen to Basch. "That wound of yours need to be treated soon."

"I'm alright," Basch answered, looking at the deep wound in his arm. He had received it when he was fighting the three Imperial Swordsman earlier, but he took the potion and drank the content. His eyes still fixed on his companion, who was currently crossing sword with the last Judge. Seeing an opportunity, Basch threw his Javelin in the Judge's direction, accurately stabbing him through the armor before the Judge fell to the Leviathan's cold floor, unmoving.

There was a moment of silence filling the room after that. No one's moving. They all stared at the bodies, waiting if one of them still have enough strength to fight.

However, when they found none, Balthier was the first one to speak.

"That was quite a fight." The sky pirate commented nonchalantly, lowering his Vega in the process and tucking it safely behind his back. He walked toward the unmoving bodies and crouched beside them, doing his habit that he never forget to do after the fight—looting. Fran and Vaan immediately went to help the guy, collecting can be sold well in the market and peering for a quick Gil in their wallet.

Vossler just snorted, watching them along with Basch from afar.

"I still can't see why we must do something like this."

Vossler turned to Basch, asking for his opinion.

"Her Majesty is waiting for us right now to save her. Time is the don't have time to play around now."

Basch chuckled a little. Ever since his journey with the three back in Barheim Passage, he had been quite amazed at how they can survive without bringing many supplies, only taking them from the monsters with the Steal technique and doing some looting after the fight. After that, he had gone to purchase the license to learn the technique and decided to do it himself too, although he was not an expert like the other two males.

"I do realize that. But there is a benefit in doing this." He took out a potion from his pocket. "Here. I steal this from one of that Imperial Swordsman. Quite useful, huh? Though I'm not an expert when it comes to stealing."

Vossler stared at the potion in Basch's hand. It's certainly quite useful since nowadays buying a potion can take up quite a Gil out of your pocket. Vossler sighed in defeat.

"You should use that to heal your wound, then," Vossler said, trying to change the subject. He glanced at the wound in Basch's arm, It had already been healing up a little after the latter drank the potion, but it would certainly leave a mark. "And thank you for saving me back there."

Basch nodded, already familiar with the fact that Vossler is not going to admit his defeat openly. Noticing a certain sky pirate approaching, Basch turned to look at him.

"Finished?"

Basch asked the man, which was answered with a solemn nod. Basch raised his eyebrows, afraid that the sky pirate might have been offended by Vossler's words. However, it seems like it's not what bothers him since the sky pirate opened his mouth and complained.

"Why are these low-rank Judges only bring so little Gil with them? And here I thought to work as Judge Magister can make us rich.." Balthier commented while he calculates the Gil he had obtained. Behind him, Fran and Vaan were sorting through the items they got from the looting. However, Balthier made no move to help them as he complained once more.

"Only 350 Gil? Hell, even my former Altair doesn't price this low.." He turned to Vaan, who had been separating the item they were going to sell apart from the medicine. "Vaan, make sure that the item sells at a high price, will you? We will sell this at your bangaa's place… Migelo, right?"

"Hey, don't just sell them all in Migelo's!" Vaan protested, throwing another set of echo herbs toward Fran. "He might take it out on me, you know! Why don't we try selling them at—"

"What the—!"

Vossler's grunt cut through Vaan's words, along with the sound of his feet connecting harshly with the mechanical door. The four turned toward the door leading to the Central Brig.1, only to find Vossler standing in front of it with annoyance in his face.

"It won't open. We need a key to open it."

Vossler pointed at a small slot on the door side. Taking a closer look at it, Basch realizes that the slot didn't shape like the ordinary key they used to know. It was more thin, square like a card.

"I think we need to find the card," Basch said, turning to look at the group. "Where do you think we can find one of those, Vossler?"

Vossler shook his head.

"There might be a lot of possibilities." He said, looking at the map he had obtained from one of the guards. "We can try to track our way back to the Sub-Control Room and see if it was kept there. But—"

"Allow me for a minute, then."

Balthier said, moving forward to observe the slot. He squinted his eyes, trying to get a clear look at the slot before taking something out of his pocket.

"Well, found this one from the Judge's pocket," Balthier smirked, the flamboyant sky pirate moved aside to show the door opening. He gave them his infamous cocky smile while showing the card with 'Central Brig.1' written on it. Vaan clapped, once again amazed at the sky pirate while Vossler just grunted as a response.

"Let's just go."

The man said, trying to shove his way past Balthier who immediately step aside. The sky pirate chuckled once again, before following after him with Basch shaking his head in exasperation, Vaan with a look of admiration, and Fran who just looks bored as always.

…

* * *

Dreadnought Leviathan – Cell C-202

"Hey, are you okay?"

Ashe asked again, unsure due to the labored breathing she could hear coming from the cell beside her. They were currently talking about the small encampment near the Banks of Nebra before the girl suddenly convulsed—or at least that's what she thinks—and gasping for air. Ashe had tried to conjure up a simple Cure through a small hole connecting the two cells, but it certainly didn't help in any kind of way.

"I'm…fine..." The girl managed to crack out a weak reply before hissing out in pain again. "Thank you…for the Cure. It really helps ease the pain."

The girl was lying, that was obvious. Ashe shifted uncomfortably on her bed, trying to peak through the small hole she had discovered earlier. However, the only thing she was able to see was a strand of black hair, covering the girl's face as she lowered her head in pain.

"Do you think I should call the guards? Maybe they have something—"

"No!" The girl screamed, her voice clear with fear and panic. "Please no. I can… manage… So… just…let me rest for awhile…"

Ashe nodded, feeling a little panic herself now that the girl sounded like she was on the verge of death. However before she could muster any reply to soothe the girl, she heard the door being slid open, along with lots of footsteps coming in.

"Finally!" The cheerful voice she vaguely remembered belonged to the boy named Vaan rang through the room. "Whoa, this doesn't look like a prison, actually."

"It is not, indeed," Balthier replied, followed by the sound of the door unlocking. "Now what do we have here? An Urn, apparently. Good to have."

"Give me the card." Vossler's voice came, along with the swelling of hope raising inside her. There was a rustling sound—probably Balthier giving the card to Vossler—before her cell door swung open, revealing a familiar man with ebony hair and hawk-like eyes.

"You are unharmed."

The man greeted her with a look of worry, his eyes trying to scan for any visible injury. Ashe ignored the stare, standing up immediately to make a quick dash for the cell beside her.

"Vossler! I-"

Ashe was about to ask Vossler to hand over the card key, yet was stopped in her track due to a sudden dizziness. Her vision darkened, and she felt that she had almost lost all of her consciousness if not for Vossler's strong hand gripping her own tightly.

"Your Majesty! "

Ashe put a hand on her forehead. She was low on magick, probably because of her casting a Cure repeatedly at the girl in the cell beside her. She hadn't realized it earlier, but now that she had been able to sort most of her thought she noticed that her whole body was shaking.

"It's nothing. I'll be fine." She rasped out, ignoring the look Vossler sent her. "Anyway, Vossler—"

She was cut from her own mind when she gets a good glance at the blonde man standing behind Vossler.

"You." She spat out, glaring toward Basch who replied the glare with a blank look. All thoughts about the girl beside her were lost, replaced by anger burning inside her at the mere sight of her father's murderer. She moved to Basch who was standing in the center of the room, fully intending to unleash her buried hatred toward the traitor. "Why are you here? Why are you even alive? Why are you—"

"There is an overflowing mist behind the door." Fran's voice rang through the room, and all of the numerous questions she had inside her immediately died down. She saw that Fran and Balthier—if she wasn't wrong remembering their name—stood in front of the door leading to the cell C-204. The boy—Vaan—was standing behind them as he too, looked at the cell with curiosity.

"I don't feel anything." He exclaimed, throwing the key card up in the air before catching it again. "Perhaps it is not dangerous."

"How many times are you going to doubt the Vierra's senses?" Balthier asked, shaking his head at Vaan before turning to look at his partner. "What do you think? Should we open it?"

Fran hesitated.

"It is indeed filled with mist, but there is a presence—"

"There is a girl inside," Ashe said, earning her the group's attention. "She talked to me a few minutes ago, but she was suddenly in pain before all of you arrived."

"That sounds like a damsel in distress," Balthier commented, taking the card key from Vaan. "Let's see if we can try to save her, then."

He slides the card key smoothly along the slot, and Ashe found herself rushing to the girl's side when the door clicked open. She ran her hand through the girl's forehead, wincing when she felt a burning sensation behind the bandage around her forehead. Taking a closer look, Ashe noticed that the bandage had been wrapped around her right eye too, covering it from any to see.

"She is burning up," Ashe said, turning to ask Balthier for a few potion to help cool down her fever. "Can I ask you for a few potion—"

She stopped in her track, realizing that Balthier had been frozen in place when he gets a look at the girl's face.

"Rynn…?"

...

 _To Be Continued_


End file.
